We Only Breathe For So Long

I stepped into sight and all heads spun towards my direction. All four of the other boys were on the couch playing Xbox and a lot of junk on the table in front of them. They were all dressed except for Garrett. He was wearing grey sweatpants and a grey top. I assumed that was either his pajamas or his lazy day clothes.

“So we meet again,” I said with a smile.

John grinned and looked at me with a warning playful look. “This is Kylie guys, the girl from the bookshop yesterday.”

The boys put on their best thinking and confused faces – except one of them.

“Hey Kylie!” said Pat with a sweet smile, waving his hand.

That kid was so cute! I thought he was a girl at first (my judging habits kicked in again) but he looked pretty boyish, it was just the hair that tricked your eyes.

All the other boys quickly turned their eyes to Pat. After utter silence, deadly stares and a couple of minutes, they finally gave up on the act.

John’s eyes were wide-open and he was trying to hide a grin, surprise was written all over his face.

“You totally ruined it Pat,” said Garrett while rolling his eyes.

They all started moaning at Pat at the same time and he just sat there smiling at their faces without a single drop of guilt.

“Guys, guys!” said John as he clapped his hands to gain some attention. “I ruined it first, I told Kylie on our way back,” he had the biggest grin ever. It was fun for him to torture them like that.

They all said ‘Ahhh’ in unison. I just stood there, laughing. I felt so comfortable in that bus of theirs. To shift the topic before someone got hurt, I removed my shoes and walked towards the sofa.

They shifted sideways to make a small place on the couch big enough to fit me. “So, what you guys up to?” I asked curiously while staring at the TV. “COD uh?”

“You know it!” said Jared.

“Wait, are you a gamer?” asked Kennedy intrigued.

“Of course! Anything that involves shooting, I’m in!” I said while stealing the controller from Garrett’s hands.

They were playing the Campaign Mode of Modern Warfare 3.

“I totally kick ass when it’s Frost,” I said through my teeth while using all my concentration on the game.

“You are by far, the coolest girl to ever step in this bus,” said Garrett while staring at me, perplexed.

John showed up with a pack of beer before I even realized he was gone. “So, how are things?”

“She’s a gamer!” shouted Garrett as he raised his arms above his head in excitement. He then hugged me tightly and kissed my cheek.

I giggled and at this stage I could bet that my cheeks were burning red.

We played for hours and hours. We played multiplayer and the winner remained while whoever lost got out. Out of the countless times we played, I managed to kick everybody’s ass and even Garrett’s once. The other times he managed to kick my ass because I was too aware of John’s presence next to me. We all just played, laughed and drank beer.

Once the sun went down and darkness controlled the sky, the boys decided to get something to eat. John, Jared, Pat and Kennedy headed out to grab some food leaving me all alone with Garrett. I really liked Garrett; he was crazy in his own little way and very dramatic towards everything. He reminded me of Eric because of his brilliant sense of humor.

Since the boys were out, I decided to help in some way and clean the table that was filled with junk food and empty beer cans. I felt at home, I didn’t even ask the usual visitor questions like ‘Where is the restroom?’ – I just looked for it until I found it.

“You’re a pretty cool girl, Manson,” said Garrett while he joined me and threw the beer cans away.

“Thank you. You guys are total down to earth rockstars!” I laughed while doing an air guitar. “I didn’t know a thing about the band until yesterday. Hell, I still don’t. Besides your names and tour bus. But so far, you’re all so great.”

He laughed. “It’s intimidating to have a girl on the bus. We have a rule. No girls allowed. If you want to stay with a girl, rent a motel because this is a boy zone only! I was really surprised when John wanted to bring you over and we all agreed to it.”

I smiled and headed towards the kitchen to start washing the dishes. John wanted to bring me over? He actually thought of bringing me here although they had agreed that girls wouldn’t be able to step in this bus? What Garrett had just said made me feel special. Special because John wanted me to come, he wanted me around and so did everybody else.

He followed me a few minutes later and sat on top of the counter next to me.

“You’re not some type of obsessed fan that pretends not to know us and manages to break our rules and slip in our tour bus and make everybody love her, are you?” asked Garrett with a sarcastic frown.

I laughed and threw a bit of water towards him. “No!”

“Hmm… good! Because if you did, I’d tell you you’re doing a great job at it,” he smiled while looking up to the ceiling.

At the same heartbeat, the door opened and the fragrance of the pizza invaded the bus. The boys came into sight and each of them was holding a box of pizza.

“Why so much pizza?” I asked, perplexed with the size and quantity of it.

“We’re boys, there’s an untraveled pit in our stomachs and food falls there instead of getting digested so we’re pretty much always hungry,” said Pat.

I chuckled and helped John by grabbing the grocery bag from his hand. He smiled at me and so did I.

We sat down at that little table of theirs. It’s designed to fit four people but we managed to fit six people somehow. Everybody devoured all the pizzas, - yes you heard me – ALL the six pizzas under an hour. Not to count the two packs of beer. By the time that the only thing left on the table was empty cans and boxes, we were all leaning back and almost unbuttoning our pants while grasping for air.

Jared threw his head back and sighed. “It was totally worth it.”

We laughed, followed by a moan because we were way too full to even laugh. I got to make a mental note, no more pizza abuse. Like, ever.

A few minutes later, we were well enough to stand up and start clearing out the table in hope to forget about the goddamn pizza or else we might just throw up.

John walked towards me and stood behind me, inches away. I could feel his warm breath behind my neck. He almost killed me with the desire to turn around and kiss the fuck out of him.

“Let’s get some fresh air? I want to show you something,” he said.